The almost-an-EU-army plan

BRATISLAVA — Italy added a new twist Tuesday to Europe's debate over how far EU countries should go on defense cooperation, calling for a coalition of member countries willing to establish a joint permanent military force.

The proposal from Italy's defense and foreign affairs ministers, Roberta Pinotti and Paolo Gentiloni, stops just short of calling for an EU army — an idea other countries including the U.K. have argued strenuously against.

But by pushing for a "Union of European Defense" that would include a permanent European force, the Italian proposal still goes further than many other countries have shown an eagerness to do.

The Italian idea builds on a proposal the two ministers made in August in a joint letter calling for a “Schengen of defense,” a coded wording that means to start establishing cooperation outside the EU treaties. It also comes after France and Germany made their own joint call to enhance defense cooperation without going so far as creating an "EU army."

Rome's new push comes after Italy's prime minister, Matteo Renzi, was critical of other EU leaders after a summit earlier this month in which European countries pledged to work together on defense and security. Renzi felt other leaders were not being bold enough.

The Italian proposal also stresses that “these efforts should not detract resources from ongoing commitments within NATO.”

The new Italian proposal, contained in a document obtained by POLITICO, says “available member states willing to share forces, command and control, maneuver and enabling capabilities, could establish a joint permanent European Multinational Force (EMF).”

The EMF would be “permanently offered” to the European headquarters for military and civilian operations — an idea currently being discussed among member countries — and “will represent the initial nucleus of a future European integrated force.”

But the Italian proposal also stresses that “these efforts should not detract resources from ongoing commitments within NATO” — a common complaint from critics of greater EU defense capabilities.

The EU's foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, downplayed any divisions among countries over how far to go in coordinating military operations, saying they would focus on "concrete, operational, pragmatic steps that we can take within the existing treaties."

She said after the meeting that, despite British concerns voiced in public about the EU defense cooperation plans, "all 28" member countries agreed to work together "to make sure it moves forward as much as we can, as long as we can at 28."

Financial incentives

The Italian proposal also addresses doubts about whether EU countries would be willing to spend more on defense, calling for “fiscal and financial incentives to European military cooperative projects aimed at achieving needed capabilities" including tax breaks and loans to help countries bear the cost of new military spending.

The proposal caught some EU diplomats off-guard Tuesday. Some said it ventured too close to an EU army idea that is opposed by London. Others said that by going it alone on this issue Italy risks showing how isolated it is on EU reform matters.

But Pinotti, the Italian defense minister, stressed that Rome's proposal stopped short of calling for an EU army.

"Nobody has actually talked about an EU army," Pinotti said. "If we aim at this it is the wrong objective."

Pinotti also said her views were in line with those of her colleagues.

“This morning in a breakfast I have had with French and German colleagues we have agreed that their document has many points in common with the one I have written with minister Gentiloni,” she told POLITICO.

“Also in the meeting today many ministers have backed both the German-French document and the Italian one. There is no will to go ahead alone, it's an Italian document that keeps together the vision of the [Italian] foreign and defense ministries.”

Pinotti added that the Italian ideas on funding of defense ambitions were similar to a proposal for a defense fund put forward by French President François Hollande.

Even though the specifics of how to boost funding were different, she said, the Italian proposal "goes in the same direction to strengthen also in terms of funding the setting up of a European defense ... and there is a consensus.”

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DanTheMan

😀 here we go again

Posted on 9/27/16 | 6:14 PM CET

Fiona

WWs, history repeating itself, who’ll command it, Hugo Boss etc. etc.

Posted on 9/27/16 | 6:20 PM CET

Filippo

Oh….never too late! Finally Germany and France understood that if it needs to divert the attention from real present problems with a completely virtual discussion about nothing….they can’t do it themselves, they are just naif amateurs. Step aside, boys, and let the professionals work. Let us show how – with unemployement at 10,migrants flooding from all over the world, deutsche bank on the brink, etc – pretend that our problem is integrating the armies. Let us show you how to keep talking of non solution to a non problem for at least a whole year as if it was the only thing on earth. Let us show you how to have different non parties defending their respective non stances on the non issues.
Let us work….we can do it!

Posted on 9/27/16 | 6:30 PM CET

wi

Italy, solve first your many internal problems… it will be a desirable objective!

Posted on 9/27/16 | 6:54 PM CET

Maverick

“Even though the specifics of how to boost funding were different, she said, the Italian proposal “goes in the same direction to strengthen also in terms of funding the setting up of a European defense… and there is a consensus.”….what funds?

Posted on 9/27/16 | 7:31 PM CET

Maverick

What consensus?

Posted on 9/27/16 | 7:34 PM CET

Maverick

What the F?

Posted on 9/27/16 | 7:35 PM CET

alan

Almost-an-EU army to join the almost- an-EU currency, an almost-an- EU single market, an almost-a-border free travel zone

Posted on 9/27/16 | 7:58 PM CET

Ray Martinez

Did you know…
The pen used by the EU army meets 16 pages of military spec……

Posted on 9/27/16 | 7:58 PM CET

Nuno

Well, at least while some europeans have wet dreams about an EU army, there’s no talk the German banking crisis. It would be kind of funny, if Germany needed a bailout to save the trillions in derivatives lost by its banks. Well, not really. We all know what happens when Germany goes bankrupt.

Posted on 9/27/16 | 8:19 PM CET

Nuno

*no talk about. Politico, an edit button would be nice. 🙂

Posted on 9/27/16 | 8:20 PM CET

TheBruce

@Nuno
Yep, decidedly quiet about the German Bank, they haven’t had time to scrape it of the BBC site and rehash it yet. Any minute now though and we’ll be able to understand why it’s the UK’s fault from the Portugal/Germany/EU spokeswoman MVU. I’m not clever enough to make the connection.

Posted on 9/27/16 | 8:53 PM CET

Franc

@Nuno

A very strong austerity package and fiscal oversight Greece style should get the Germans back on track.

Posted on 9/27/16 | 9:58 PM CET

Ian

Is this code for “German taxpayers should stump up for Italian military expenses”?

The eu comedy show just gets better and better. Who’s hoping for season 2?

Posted on 9/27/16 | 11:20 PM CET

Ian

I’m very conscious that Portugal is our oldest ally. Be a shame if that was broken. Goes back 500 years.nice people the Potuguese.

Posted on 9/27/16 | 11:48 PM CET

Nuno

@ Ian

The Treaty of Windsor is probably the oldest alliance in the world. It survived Napoleon, Hitler, and will still be here when the wannabe leaders of an ever closer Europe die.
With Brexit or not, the British will always be very welcome in Portugal.

Posted on 9/28/16 | 12:50 AM CET

shivang gupta

Why is the uk discussing this when it is leaving?

Posted on 9/28/16 | 12:52 AM CET

Filippo

@ian
Actually italian defense expenditure is a little higher than german.
Btw I’m still waiting for someone to tell me which of our expenditures are paid by german taxpayers. Up to date I only know of 60 bn € italian taxpayers handed to greece and others to rescue german rotten banks. And we are waiting to know how high the bill is for deutsche and commerz

Posted on 9/28/16 | 9:33 AM CET

Roy Jacobs

Not a word about paying the 2% military spending that NATO membership demands.

Posted on 9/28/16 | 9:41 AM CET

alan

@Filippo

Not just Deutsche & Commerz, might as well add NordLB to the list…

Posted on 9/28/16 | 10:30 AM CET

Filippo

@alan,
Hey, slow down….remember we are a poor country, always needing help from the mighty germany….we just can’t spend all that money for fireworks!

Posted on 9/28/16 | 10:43 AM CET

alan

@Filippo

I really really don’t think you are going to like Die Welt report about German Govt rescue plan for Deutsche – currently being carried on BBC Live Business News

I expect Politico will get to it next week sometime, that is after Renzi explodes

Posted on 9/28/16 | 11:38 AM CET

alan

Apologies – Die Zeit

The German government and financial authorities are preparing a rescue plan for Deutsche Bank in case the lender would be unable to raise capital itself to pay for costly litigation, said news agency Reuters, citing German newspaper Die Zeit.

According to the draft plan, Deutsche Bank would be able to sell assets to other lenders at prices that would ease the strain on the lender and not put an additional burden on the bank, the article said.

In an extreme emergency, the German government would even offer to take a direct stake of 25%, the article added.

Posted on 9/28/16 | 11:50 AM CET

Filippo

@alan
Prices that ease the strain….uhm….this smells like state aid. The german government holding a stake? Uhm….I’m very surprised. We are used to be lectured by Mr Weidmann and Mr Schauble so often about rules to be complied with that I didn’t expect the bundesrepublik to bundescheat so openly.
No….these must surely be fake news. Let’s wish them a merry default and a happy bail in

Posted on 9/28/16 | 12:23 PM CET

Ian

@fillipo

German taxpayers believe they pay for everything and that the eu should really just be an extension of the Reichstag. Italy used to have a highly regarded ministry of finance before the euro. When you outsource an important part of your political decision making to an unelected body, what can you expect?

Posted on 9/28/16 | 1:23 PM CET

DanTheMan

@Nuno

Since 1386, a treaty 630 years old still in force to this day.

Posted on 9/28/16 | 2:13 PM CET

DanTheMan

@shivang gupta

Because we can? It’s interesting? We have many friends in Europe? This may bite us all up the a$$ later? Millions of Britons died last time Europe tooled up and lost control? Because we’ll probably end up watching all your well spent money on the news in years to come? Because you can bet the Russians are talking about a military build up in Europe after 25 million of them were slaughtered the last time you all got the itch?

Will that do for you?

Posted on 9/28/16 | 2:24 PM CET

Filippo

@ian
The worse thing is that we aren’t even outsourcing. In the latest 25 years our ministers for finances were all, but Giulio Tremonti, unelected and coming from some international body. Some would say they were imposed, but I wonder how you can impose something to a g7 country, with the eighth bigger gdp in the world and first european contributor to UN peace missions. Unless that country itself and its elite are part of the game. And this is the sad truth….

Posted on 9/28/16 | 3:23 PM CET

Ian

@Fillipo

European governments seem to be outsourcing parts of government where difficult decisions have to be made or where a creditor body such as the EU bank, IMF, etc. wants to impose constraints on spending.

It is not democratic.

Personally, I was in favour of the eu. If you wanted to live like a Frenchman you could go and live in France. If you wanted to buy German cars, you could do so free from punative taxes and tariffs.

Now, it’s become a way of merging different people and cultures together and taking control of people’s everyday lives.

The best thing about us Europeans are our differences, which are gradually being eroded.

Posted on 9/28/16 | 11:46 PM CET

Filippo

@ian
No, it is not democratic. Definitely.
A very smart french statesman, Jean Pierre Chevenement, warned us a long ago: the EU is the place where governments go when they want to take decisions their ashamed of, bypassing their own parliaments.
This is why I don’t trust anymore any bid to turn it democratic. If they’d ever succeed probably elites would prefer better drop the integration

Posted on 9/29/16 | 11:07 AM CET

TG

As an ex serviceman, and just as an observation….The personnel in the main photo look truly thrilled to be involved. 🙂

Posted on 9/29/16 | 12:22 PM CET

S.Alexander

@TG

Nah!… That’s the German‘s happy face.

Posted on 9/29/16 | 8:32 PM CET

Toni

Well, may be the British had many friends before the Brexit, but since they have started to punch Polish migrants on the streets of London, among others non-UKs Europeans, and put at the top of the Foreign Office such smart politicians as Boris Johnson, I would not be so sure that you still have so many friends around. Let me tell you a secret…the days of the Empire are over…long time ago. You are struggling to renew your nuclear deterrence, Scotland is claming for a second referendum about its independence, Northen Ireland’s economy cannot afford to have borders again with the Republic of Ireland; if you leave the UE you will have to deal with your own problems for a while…and your banks already had a ‘few problems’, do you remember 2009 how their banks were rescued? Lloyds bank is firing 3000 employees as Brexit’s first consequence, so let’s see what happens when the fog of war vanishes. Bristish people should be a bit more humble when they talk about Europe, it would not make any harm, moreover it will be beneficial to them. Note: Germany’s current account € 30.4bn, March data.